I am now writing about minor league baseball over at Minor League Ball and Boston Sports Then and Now. I am doing lax writing at InLaxWeTrust and hockey at Inside Hockey. If I ever need to rant this will be my outlet.

But for now thanks for all the support as I wrote here the last year. Read me at those sites and thanks again for commenting and reading.

The Boston Bruins have now allowed four unanswered goals in two of their last three games. They have also blown two goal leads two straight games. But last night was real bad. The Buffalo Sabres, right now a playoff team, is one thing, but the Islanders? Really?

Now I do not think it is panic time. It seems Tomas Kaberle has not impacted the power play as hoped. But there are still good signs. Chris Kelly and Rich Peverley bring skill and speed to the table, non-sucking Daniel Paille if you will. I will be disagreed with here, but I also feel Micheal Ryder is playing better.

Are they scoring four goals a game like on the road trip? No, but offense is not a problem. 2-0 to the Islanders should be enough with Tim Thomas. They have allowed 40 shots for two games in a row now, which cannot continue. Dennis Seidenberg has struggled of late, and they obviously miss Andrew Ference and Steven Kampfer.

But again, there are still good signs and the road trip should not be forgotten. This is a team that can go far with just a few tweaks.

OK, as baseball season approaches, us at Total Bases hope to start writing daily. There is a chance the blog moves to a new address, but that is still up in the air.

Main point is, I will continue to write about Boston sports with some national news also. Hopefully I can be at some live events for you too. But for lacrosse stuff, read inlaxwetrust.com

Scores:

The Boston Bruins blew their second straight game after leading by two goals with a 4-2 loss to the New York Islanders. This is the first time the Bruins lost in regulation after leading by two goals. They have three OT losses, one to Montreal and two to Buffalo. Zdeno Chara and Nathan Horton scored for the Bruins. Look for full recap tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the Celtics also lost to the Philadelphia 76ers, their second straight loss after Wednesday’s loss to the LA Clippers. The Celtics were down most of the game, and made a nice little comeback in the fourth, only to blow it. Will probably also have a recap of this also.

In other relevant scores, The Washington Capitals defeated the Carolina Hurricanes, 2-1. The win keeps the Caps in second overall in the east. As I write this, the Ottawa Senators are leading the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in the third.

As far as spring training goes, the Red Sox split their split squad games. They lost 3-2 to the Minnesota Twins, while Jon Lester pitched a good game and Jonathan Papelbon struggled. They did defeat the Houston Astros, 9-3. Kyle Weiland got the win for Boston, and Brett Myers took the loss.

Meanwhile, the NFLPA decertified. Shocker. So we miss out. Does the MLL take advantage of this? We will have an article up on ILWT at some point on this.

So to all our loyal followers still here, thanks for sticking around, you will see more action hopefully. Maybe some more youtube videos too.

What happened yesterday in sports? A lot, and we are here to recap it for you.

Game Notes:

* The Chicago Bulls topped the Miami Heat, 93-89 . This comes after both teams did not make many deadline moves, but the Heat are very much in on Troy Murphy, though I think he will end up a Celtic. Derrek Rose had 26 points for Chicago, while Dwayne Wade led all scorers with 34.

* The Boston Celtics fell to the new-look Nuggets, 89-75. Boston was without Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson, who they traded to the Thunder. Also out was Shaquille O’Neal, leaving the Celtics without any big men after Semih Erden was traded to Cleveland.

* The Philadelphia Flyers defeated the New York Islanders in OT, 4-3. The Islanders took an early lead, but the Flyers stormed back to take this one.

* The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Montreal Canadiens, 5-4. Toronto took a 3-1 lead and Montreal later tied it with two PP goals. But the Maple Leafs scored soon after, and were able to win in Montreal.

* Some big moves in the NHL and NBA yesterday. Gerald Wallace was sent to Portland, which really shows the state Charlotte is in. That is all they have, and you have to wonder if folding is inevitable.

* I like the Perkins trade for both teams. From the Thunder side, they get a big man that can really make a difference. For the Celtics, they improve offenseivly with Jeff Green and while Perkins is great on defense, it does not hurt them that much. It is a gamble, with both O’Neal’s hurt, but if they get Murphy I think it’s well worth it.

* The goaltender carosual in Tampa Bay continues. They get rid of Dan Ellis and bring in Curtis McElhinny. I don’t think this makes a difference for the Lightning. The east will come down to Philadelphia and Boston.

* Brooks Orpik will miss the next five weeks for the Penguins. Tough loss after trading Alex Goligoski. Also interesting to see how Alex Kovalev works out there.

* And lastly, an NLL shout out. Brad Bannister, what are you doing? Folding the Roughnecks could kill the league, and you’re fine with it? Take the offer from the Flames and go away.

Hello baseball fans, Total Bases is back just in time for the season! I will be in spring training to bring you all the up to date news of the GrapeFruit league, so stay tuned!

MLB News and Notes:

* Those comments by Hank Steinbrenner were unwaranted. Who cares about what Derek Jeter does in the offseason? I mean, your team got to the ALCS, how were they not focused? If Mark Teixera didn’t get hurt, you might have gone to the World Series.

* Don’t overlook the Oakland Athletics. They have a terrific pitching staff and I think their offense is improved. I am a big fan of Cliff Pennington and Daric Barton, plaus Kurt Suzuki, Hideki Matsui and Josh Willingham should all help.

* Another team to watch in spring training is the Chicago White Sox. I also have a great feeling about them, with their pitching and I think Adam Dunn helps Paul Konerko a lot.

* We refuse to talk about Albert Pujols.

* I would like Tampa Bay if they had a bullpen. Their starting pitchers are awesome, and offense should be decent but other than JP Howell and Jake McGee they got nothing.